Introducing Solids: Making Your Own Baby Food

So here it is, part three of Introducing Solids, the Basics of Making Baby Food. You've decided to forgo the store baby food and you want to make your own.  Great!  But, how do you start? What do you do?  I promise, it's not as hard as it may seem.  It's pretty easy actually, and once you get in a groove it'll be as easy as store bought. 

First, a couple of things you'll need:

Blender: I use the baby bullet but after using it for a couple of months now I would say a regular food processor, food chopper or blender would be fine.  There's no need for anything super fancy.

Spatula - To get every bit of baby food out of the blender. If you buy the baby bullet you'll get a spatula and some storage containers to get you started.  Otherwise, any spatula is good.

Storage Containers - You know, to store your food. We like the Rubbermaid 1/2 cup size the best.  They are the perfect portion for Noah who eats two containers of food for all three meals.  They also store and stack really easy without taking a lot of room.

Pot or pan - To cook your food.

Once you have what you need to make the food, the rest is easy.  I like to cook fresh or frozen food mostly.  I haven't tried canned although I suppose you could.  I try to buy the freshest ingredients so I can make the best food.  

I begin with a pan with about an inch of water at the bottom and then add the food.  You can put spices into your food.  I like cinnamon for a lot of the fruits but make sure you stay away from salt as babies don't need as much as adults.  They also don't know how much better food tastes with salt since they've never had it, so they wont miss it.

Boil it until tender and fully cooked.  Finally, blend it and store it!  That's all there's to it. 

When cooking foods you can cook different foods at the same time or make them separate and mix them after they're cooked.  A couple of our favorites are:

sweet potatoes and chicken

pears and cinnamon

apples and cinnamon

coliflour, pat of butter and parmesan cheese

potato, corn and peas

broccoli and carrots

carrots and squash

The possibilities are endless, and until Noah gets some teeth, this is how we'll be introducing most of our foods. 

We have started giving Noah pieces of food that are in a stick shape so he'll be able to hold and learn to gum food.  So far we've tries, sweet potato and regular potato fries, cooked carrot sticks, cooked long noodles like rotini, and sticks of pears and apples. He loves the pureed food much more as it's easier to eat for him but he's definitely learning how to feel himself.  It's so much fun to watch him learn. 

Finally, you can get the links to part one and two below.

Part One:  What Foods Do I Choose?

Part Two: What Feeding Supplies do I Need?

Introducing Solids: What Feeding Supplies do I Need?

Alright, so here we are with part two of Introducing Solids. You can check out part one here --> What foods do I choose?  So you've chosen what you want to feed your baby, but that's not all, you still have to make it.  And do you need anything else? Of course you do! Unless you want them to use their hands, which, good luck with that mess.  Especially day one of solids. =)

All kidding aside, there are a couple things you'll need to feed your baby.

 1. Boon Flair High Chair - You'll need somewhere for your baby to sit. It doesn't have to be this one specifically, although we own this chair and it's amazing.  We have a bar size table and this will increase it's size to fit perfectly.  It's also made of one piece other than the blue seat cover which you can take out and rinse in case of a giant mess.  The trays have clear covers that can be put in the dishwasher.  Overall it's so worth the money because it's so convenient and easy to clean. Plus it looks super cute.  If you're starting out feeding and haven't decided yet which chair you want to buy, you can always start with the bumbo which is much cheaper and you might already have it sitting around.

2. Food - Like we talked about in the earlier post, you'll need to consult with your doctor before you introduce solids but you'll need some kinds of food.  Pre-made or you can even make it yourself, which will be our third and last post!

3. Munchkin Bowls - If your feeding your child pre-made food, for the most part, you should be able to feed them out of the containers you buy. However, if you start making food and would like to mix combinations you didn't cook together, you'll need something to put the food in.  We love these because they are super cheap and a perfect size to hold.

4. Bibs - Feeding is messy, enough said.  We like these Carters ones because they snap on the side.  I hate velcro, it's a pain to wash since they stick to everything. And you'll want a side closure since it'll be easier to reach.

5. Spoons - And finally, you'll need something to get that food in that mouth! Doesn't need to be anything fancy or expensive.  Even now, if I'm eating something Noah can eat I'll feed him with my own utensil.  These are nice because again, they are cheap, soft and come in bright fun colors to match the bowls. 

And that's it! You really don't need that many things.  You're almost there.  Now you'll need to decide; will you be making the food, or buying it?  If you're gonna buy it that's pretty easy but if you're gonna make it check back for part three of Introducing Solids!

Introducing Solids: What Foods do I Choose?

Starting solids is tough for first time moms. We have so many questions on how to begin.  What do I start with, what do I give him, how much, premade or home made, what do I need?  It's pretty daunting. I thought I would write a couple of posts on  Introducing Solids.  What I have learned so far, what works for us and how we made our food. 

Let me just start out by saying, that I'm by no means an expert.  Take what you want, and leave the rest here.  I've done my fair share of internet research, (I know, very informative) but I've also talked with our pediatrician a couple of times to make sure we were doing the "right" thing.  Which let me tell you, it's pretty hard to mess up.  After talking to my pediatrician (who is super laid back) I pretty much felt like I could do whatever I wanted.  That's when I started to look online for a little bit more guidance.  But like I said, there are so many ways to start solids, you just have to decide what works well for you. 

We started Noah on solids pretty early, around four months.  At that point we had switched him to formula for a while and he just wasn't ever satisfied.  He always wanted more and more.  It was then that we decided he needed a little bit more substance. Here is a list of what we've given him so far and in what semi-order:

Rice Cereal                                                 
Carrots                                                       
Sweet Potatoes                                         
Oatmeal Cereal                                         
Banana
Peas
Apples
Pears
Avocado
Broccoli
Green Beans
Cauliflower
Zucchini
Squash
Pumpkin
Egg Yolk
Potatoes
Chicken
Peaches

So what do I start with?

Common First Foods 

Rice and Oatmeal Cereal

Avocado

Bananas 

Sweet Potatoes

We picked our first foods a little on research but a lot on what was available fresh in the store since we made our own baby food.  More on that later. =)  We did a lot of the common first foods and then just added things we typically ate at home anyway.  I recommend picking your foods and your food order by finding whats obviously safe for your baby to eat but also what's convenient for your baby to eat.  Because lets face it, later on when you do the cooking, they're going to be eating the same food as you anyway. I can't imagine any mom wants to make more than one meal a day. 

What do I feed them next?

Well, we've only gone about three months in this process and this post is mainly to help just help you start.  I have however started to look forward a bit and found this great chart. 

I couldn't seem to find the website at all so no link back  =(  but I've also been looking at wholesomebabyfood's website. Not only are they a great beginning website but they have great information about feeding your baby for a long time, so check them out as well.

And finally, a couple of things to keep in mind:

1. Talk to your doctor before you do anything.  Mine was pretty open about what we fed Noah but I've also heard other doctors who have a list they want you to stick to. 

2. Wait a couple of days in between foods and look for any allergic reactions. I've heard three to four days.  We did that at first and eventually did one or two days in between. 

3. Make sure the food you are giving is food they can eat.  Soft and finely mashed, so they don't choke on it. If you're doing Baby Led Weaning, BLW, I'm not much of an expert at all so you'll have to research that on your own.  I do believe you start those kinds of solids later though, when they are more advanced with their hands and mouth. 

4. Finally, do what feels right to you.  Do as much research as you need but always trust what your mommy gut is telling you.

Once you have an idea of what foods you want to give your baby now you have to decide:

Do I want to make this food or buy it?

And what feeding supplies do I need?

We'll work on those questions another time. =)